FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 21, 2025
CONTACT: press@seekerstrategies.com
House Bill 2 triples facility funding for unaccountable charter schools
Unlike public school districts, charter schools can incur billions of dollars in debt for facilities without any vote by the public
AUSTIN, Texas – Yesterday, Texas House Public Education Committee Chairman Brad Buckley filed House Bill 2, an omnibus school finance bill. HB 2 triples funding for charter school facilities with no cap on the total cost to taxpayers—because there is no cap on charter enrollment. HB 2 also broadens the use of these funds beyond financing instructional facilities. Instead, under this bill charter schools could use the facilities allotment to pay debt service on bonds issued for anything districts can, even though districts require voter approval to incur debt for facilities while charters do not. Taxpayers will be required to pay for this increase in charter facilities in their communities whether they want them or not, but they have no voice in approving them.
“Charter schools already receive about 17% of all state aid for public schools even though they serve just about 8% of Texas students,” said Maggie Stern, Director of Community Engagement at Our Schools Our Democracy. “The escalating costs of this inefficient parallel education system further threaten our already-underfunded Texas public schools. Texas parents, students, and taxpayers deserve more power over the decisions that shape our beloved local schools.”
For more on the failures of charter policy in Texas, check out our new research report.
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Our Schools Our Democracy (OSOD) is a Texas-based nonpartisan and independent 501c3 nonprofit organization established to educate and inform parents, taxpayers, and decision-makers about the impact of unlimited charter school expansion on our public school districts, neighborhood schools, students, and our democracy.